February 14, 2012
AWR Hawkins

At CPAC over the weekend, Pima County Sheriff Paul Babeu (AZ), also a Republican congressional candidate for the upcoming 2012 election, was asked about Attorney General Eric Holder and Fast and Furious.

His answers were to the point:

I believe…and many sheriffs in Arizona believe that, he…perjured himself. His story has changed. After there was evidence produced that he did know — he was given briefings, he was given emails — he then started to walk back his statements to say that, “well, I misunderstood the question.”

This is a reference to Holder’s original May 3rd testimony wherein he told Congressman Darrell Issa (R-CA) that he only learned about Fast and Furious “a few weeks ago,” i.e., sometime in April. But as facts continued to emerge, facts like President Obama’s braggadocios snippet about talking to Holder about Fast and Furious in March, Holder back peddled on his timeline, saying he’d misunderstood Issa’s question, and that he’d actually learned of Fast and Furious in late January / early February. (And since the new timeline was introduced, in congressional testimony Holder has admitted that “in early March [he] ordered that a directive be sent to law enforcement agents and prosecutors prohibiting [gun walking].”)

Sure makes the excuse, “Well, I misunderstood the question,” seem a bit weak doesn’t it?

That’s certainly Sheriff Babeu’s opinion:

As a police officer before I was a sheriff, when somebody I’m talking to starts to change their story — that’s a clue they’re not telling the truth. So, this guy (Holder) is in charge of the Department of Justice, still — to this day — from Dec. 15, 2010, so it’s been over a year and there’s still been no accountability, we still don’t know who’s approved this program. How can that be?

Babeu’s reference to December 15, 2010 is yet another reminder of the infamous death of Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry: the agent who was shot with Fast and Furious weapons. Nearly 13 months to the day since Terry was killed there have been no charges, but plenty of documents withheld, testimonies changed, DOJ letters retracted, etc.

It’s past high time for the prosecution of those behind Fast and Furious to begin. (But between now then, you’ve got to love the way Sheriff Babeu referred to Holder as “this guy.”)

» Fast and Furious: Arizona Sheriff Paul Babeu Says Holder Has Perjured Himself - Big Government